Selling your home is among the most consequential financial decisions you’ll make in your life. It’s also one that will have a profound influence on your life, your lifestyle, and your family’s way of life. As such, you’ll want to get your house sale spot-on in order to maximize the value of your home and ensure that you’re moving with confidence and positivity to your new abode. This article highlights five of the most important steps to get right before your house hits the market.
Valuation
Your home will need valuing. You’ll know what it was worth when you first bought it, and you’ll have some idea of the cash you’ve invested into your home as an asset since you moved in. Generally, you can add up these amounts, taking account of swings in the housing market in general, to generate a very rough estimation of what your house might be worth today.
It’s more complicated than that, though, and that’s why when selling your home, you will always require someone to come in and value it for you. At the same time, you’ll want a professional to inspect your home for any liabilities that you might be passing on to the new owner after the sale has gone through. These might be used in negotiations to drive the asking price down, so it’s good to be aware of these ahead of time.
Cleaning
When you’ve got your paperwork in order, and you’ve decided to take your house to the market, it’ll be time to get your home into a good state in which you’ll be more than proud to show prospective property owners your home. That means giving the whole place a deep clean and a good tidy so that you’re presenting your home in the best possible light to those who might well be interested in purchasing it.
The cleaning isn’t solely for the purpose of enchanting visitors to your home, though. Before then, you’ll want to take photographs of your home to show each room to viewers of online advertisements. Your listing will sit on a home-selling website, where the best images are much more likely to generate interest and clicks. To this end, ensure the lighting is perfect for each photo, and use a wide-angle lens where possible to make rooms feel spacious. It may be worth hiring a professional home photographer to take these images for you.
Advertising
As well as the finely curated images you’ll be sharing with the world, there are some important extras that you should also promote about your home. For instance, potential buyers are going to be interested in some biographical information about the home, such as when it was built, the area it’s in, and the type of amenities that are nearby.
More importantly, though, they’re going to be interested in dimensions, especially if they’re moving existing furniture into the home. You can set their minds at ease by providing a floor plan of your home using simple online technology to input room measurements and generate a high-quality image of what your home looks like inside – and what dimensions each room has. This is something that can help encourage browsing buyers to come to your home for a viewing.
Viewings
When you’re showing people around your home, there are some classic tricks of the trade that can make them feel more comfortable and imagine themselves in your home. These include the cliche smell of baked bread, which is said to make people feel at home, or simply offering your guests a hot drink as they look around.
Usually, you’ll have a property expert showing people around your home. But seeing as there’s a chance you’ll be in it yourself when the viewing takes place, it’s always advisable that you’re friendly, open, and positive about the neighborhood and the nearby amenities.
Your New Home
As all of this is taking place, you’ll be working tirelessly to secure your new home. The amount of money you’re able to take from your current property will help you cover fees and achieve a better mortgage rate on your new home.
These processes always take place in tandem, and a chain of house sellers and buyers is reliant upon everyone exchanging at the same time. You’ll want to ensure your purchasing efforts are well aligned with your selling efforts to smooth your transition to a new home.
These five steps are essential for those who are looking to put their property on the market and achieve a high price for the home they’re moving away from.